Why boastest thyself in mischief, O mighty man? The goodness of God endureth continually Thou lovest evil more than good and lying rather than to speak righteousness Selah

But, I am like agreen olive tree in the house of God I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever I will praise thee forever because thou hast done it and I will wait on thy name for it is good before the saints

At the first sign of a scratch or a scrape, out come the band-aids as Heather begins to look like a patched up head on auto collision victim. And, what does Heather do with the few band-aids that remain after her patch job? Why, she sticks them on the floor, the living room table, and even on the carpeting covering the stairs leading to our bed rooms.

Have mercy upon me, O God according to thy loving kindness according to the multitude of thy tender mercies Blot out my transgressions Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin

For I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is forever before me

Behold, Thou desirest truth in the inward parts and in the hidden part Thou shalt make me to know wisdom

Purge me with hissop and I shall be clean Wash me, and I shall be whiter thansnow Create in me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit within me Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me with thy free spirit The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit A broken and a contrite spirit, O God, thou wilt not despise

As we climbed the stairs the other evening, we noticed the following items...

One collapsible orange and white plastic comb One mini (picture) album from Springfield, Illinois One bib with a fireman wearing a red hat with the number "3" on it, carrying a green and yellow hose One slightly used, but extremely grayed popsicle stick One ling-necked, brown and yellow cardboard giraffe.

Usually, like many parents, we have a tendency to reprimand our children for the toys they have strewn on the stairs, but this night these thoughts occurred....

What "toys" have we left on the stairs during our climb toward eternal life? Were they toys of innocence, like our children's?

Fortunately, we believe in the power of the Blood of the Lamb to wash clean even the dirtiest of toys For if it were not for the Atonement of Jesus Christ, our climb would be most superfluous.

We read a recent news release in which President Carter's mother intimated that "A throbbing neck vein is a dead giveaway that the chief executive is angry." We can certainly identify with the President's outward sign of an inward irritability.

The other afternoon, our wife presented us with a doctor's bill that almost made us pass out. As we sat there gazing at the inflationary figure, a large tear began to well up in the corner of our eye.

"Please dear," said our wife, "no weeping in front of the children."

Then our wife boldly showed us today's grocery bill. We began to moan and groan vociferously. "Please honey," said the wife, "try to control the wailing." Just then, one of our sons came in the house after spending most of the day painting his club house. We could tell in an instance that he had gone up to his room, for there were white shoe prints on the carpet all the way up on the stairs.

We began to grit and grind our teeth. "Aw, come on honey, said the wife. "We can't hear the TV."

As we began to retire for the night, our sweet wife remarked "Dear I'm so proud of you. In spite of everything, you've got the calmest neck veins of anyone I ever saw."

On this St Valentine's day, our hearts go out to you. (Sorry, I just couldn't help myself.) Most historians agree that St Valentine was martyred by order of Emperor Claudius II about 269 A.D., and was buried at a cemetery on the Via Flamine near the Milvian bridge, north of Rome.

Legend has it that on the night before he was executed, St Valentine healed his jailer's blind daughter, and penned a note to her signed, "your Valentine." St Valentine is known as the Patron Saint of young people, love, lovers, engaged couples, and happy marriages.

Some might criticize the commercialization that occurs with this wonderful holiday, but not us. For, people around the world stop their busy lives for a few minutes and send out love thoughts and well wishes to millions, that otherwise might not often be thought of, in a kind and loving way.

Happy Valentine's Day to you all. May this be one of the most glorious and warmhearted days of your lives. xoxo. (Written on 12 February 2015)

"The Hound of Heaven" is a 182-line poem written by the English poet, Francis Thompson. It was first published in England in 1893.

The poem starts off with these powerful and best known lines...

"I fled Him, down the nights and down the days; I fled Him, down the arches of the years; I fled Him, down the labyriinthine ways Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from Him, and under running laughter Up vistaed hopes I sped;..."

After we reach adulthood, most of us do not cling to that which is best. We instantly, or over time, live lives that are second best or worse. Unfortunately, most of us flee from the arms of our Heavenly father under the false assumption that there is something so much better for us than his commandments, laws and matchless love.

Because of our human nature, the chase is always on as we so easily go our own way trying to avoid the presence of God.

And so God chases after us because He loves us. And, thank God, we occasionally catch Him.

For the first nine years of our marriage, Donna and I yearned for a home surrounded by trees.

A couple of years ago we got our wish. Now every time it rains a little or the wind blowsgustily, we discovered dead limbs all over our yard.

Now if we ever wanted to compare ourselves to a tree, (it 's been done before!) we might realize that dead limbs over time affect the good health and well being of the tree. The sooner we rid ourselves of our dead spiritual limbs, the better off we shall be. As spring approches, we just may be ready for a little fine trimming and cutting. May we be reminded, there's no dead wood in Heaven.